Strong graduate outcomes with earnings well above peer institutions. Robust earnings growth over time.
What graduates earn 10 years after enrollment.
Annual salary at 10 years
Lower quartile earnings
Upper quartile earnings
How graduate earnings grow in the decade after enrollment.
University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign graduates demonstrate steady earnings growth over their early career period. Median earnings increase from $64,802 at six years after enrollment to $74,029 at eight years and $81,054 at ten years, representing 25.1% growth between the six and ten-year marks.
How outcomes compare to similar institutions.
Strong relative performance — graduates earn notably more than peers at comparable institutions.
Financial justification for the investment.
Excellent affordability. Median debt of $19,500 is well under annual earnings, enabling comfortable repayment.
University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign graduates complete their education with median debt of $19,500, positioned just $500 below the peer median of $20,000 and ranking at the 72nd percentile for debt levels. Debt outcomes show meaningful variation, with graduates at the 25th percentile borrowing $8,750 and those at the 75th percentile carrying $26,462.
University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign delivers exceptional return on educational investment, ranking at the 95.3rd percentile nationally with excellent performance. Graduates earn $11,414 beyond expectations at the 87.2nd percentile, demonstrating the institution's ability to exceed predicted outcomes for its student population characteristics.
Approximately 27.3% of University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign graduates continue to graduate or professional school, based on program mix analysis wi...
Program mix explains much of the earnings story.
University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign's strongest earnings outcomes concentrate in STEM and business fields, with Computer Science leading at $143,775 median earnings and Computer Engineering following at $122,137. Business programs also perform exceptionally, with Banking and Financial Support Services reaching $99,685 and Information Resources Management at $96,374.
Traditional engineering fields like Mechanical Engineering ($87,705) and Electrical Engineering ($90,757) maintain strong outcomes, while quantitative fields such as Mathematical Statistics ($84,760) also exceed $80,000. This program diversity enables students with different interests to access high-earning career paths, though outcomes vary significantly based on field selection.
See which programs drive the strongest earnings and career trajectories
Earnings outcomes at University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign show substantial variation reflecting diverse career paths and program choices. The distribution spans from $54,886 at the 25th percentile to $116,541 at the 75th percentile, creating a 2.1:1 ratio between top and bottom quartiles.
